Apple picking during the fall season in Minnesota is a tradition as timeless as well… apple pie. And owners of Apple Jack Orchards in Delano, Mary and Ray Mithun, are keeping the tradition going with endless fun fall family activities, delicious baked goods, and, of course, a beautiful orchard filled with delectable, juicy apples.
“So many families have come here for generations, year after year,” says Mary. “We have so many adults who speak fondly of coming to the orchard as children and wanting to continue with their kids. People love it here!”
While we have to patiently wait until the orchard opens as soon as the first apples are ready in mid-August, the team at Apple Jack’s is working year-round to create the incredible experience we get to enjoy a few special months every year.
“The pruning season starts mid to late December and is a crucial step in growing quality apples and having healthy trees, allowing the fruit and leaves to have plenty of access to sun and air to minimize fungal issues,” explains orchard manager Ben Fontana. When spring comes, it’s time for weed and pest control, and in early summer, they start planting their pumpkins and sunflowers.
“From late summer to early fall, we’re preparing for harvest and getting the Fun Farm ready for guests, building new and exciting experiences,” says Ben. “After the season ends, we frantically clean up fallen fruit and leaves, which helps reduce the potential for disease outbreaks the following season. All of the weed material, fallen fruit, and wood chips we receive from local arborist companies are used in composting systems, building resilience in our soils and, in turn, in our trees and other crops. We are a ‘soil first’ farm in that most of our decisions are geared toward how we can improve our soil health.”
Along with the incredible team at Apple Jack, during the three-month fall season, they also employ 150 hard-working teenagers. “It’s a beautiful, well-oiled machine, run by people who grew up farming and growing things and then baking them into yummy pies and crisps and donuts and baked goods!” says Mary.
“When we first bought the orchard in 2021, it was the craziest thing we had ever done. I can’t even make a house plant grow!” Mary says. “Suddenly, we had an apple orchard with 10,000 apple trees, a big pumpkin patch, and half an acre of sunflowers. But luckily, the orchard came with a brilliant staff of amazing, talented people, who, after they stopped laughing at how scared we looked, were willing to kindly teach us what it takes to operate an orchard, which is also a restaurant, a gift shop, and a gorgeous farm that produces 16 different varieties of apples.”
Honeycrisp is their most popular seller, and for the bakers, they’ve found Zestar! makes for a great baking apple, which they discovered when making their mouthwatering pies and crisps. “Oh, the pies!! Take one home and bake it. It’s the best you’ll ever taste. All the two-crust pies are hand-rolled. We make 11 flavors of pies and five flavors of crisps. People go nuts for the pumpkin bars and caramel apple pie squares. Plan on them for Thanksgiving!” says Apple Jack’s baker Terese Swearingen.
And then there’s the donuts. Apple Jack makes and sells 110,000 of them each season. A definite must-try at the orchard.
If you’re still hungry, you can enjoy lunch in their cafe, where they serve soups, their signature Sloppy Jack (BBQ pulled pork sandwich), mac & cheese, apple bread, and more. You’ll also find all kinds of jams, jellies, sauces, toys and games for the kids, and unique homemade gifts in their gift shop.
On the north side of the orchard, you’ll see lots of young families enjoying what Mary calls agri-tainment, including jumping pillows, low ropes courses, a giant mega slide, paintball, apple cannons, a five-acre Snoopy and Charlie Brown-themed corn maze, a giant corn pit for kids to play in, basketball, football tires, tetherball, and sand diggers.
And the main attraction? Pick your own apples! Check on their website when your favorite varieties are ready, and then head out to the orchard to fill a bag.
“It’s such a happy place,” says Mary. “There is something about feeling the dirt under your feet, and seeing the rows and rows of apples, and watching the hustle and bustle in the kitchen as the pies, donuts, and crisps are made, smelling the cinnamon and pumpkin spice — well, it’s heaven.”
Plan your visit: https://www.applejackorchards.com/
So many families have come here for generations, year after year.